help test for microorganisms in water supplies. It uses small balls containing a chemical compound that, when heated and then kept insulated, will stay at 37 °C (approx. 99 °F) for 24 hours. MIT professor and engineer Amy B. Smith invented the phase-change incubator in 1999. 1999 Bowtie cotter pin A bowtie cotter pin is a formed wire fastener that resembles an R-clip, except it positively locks when installed. Rue S. Leitzke and Roman J. Baus first patented the bowtie cotter pin in 1999. U.S. patent #6,135,693 was filed on March 23, 1999 and issued to Leitzke and Baus on October 24, 2000. 1999 iBOT The iBOT is a stable and mobile powered wheelchair that balances on two of a total of six wheels. The iBOT is capable of climbing stairs as well as giving the user the ability to make eye-contact with a standing individual. Dean Kamen invented the iBOT in 1999. Kamen filed U.S. patent #6311794 on October 27, 1999 and later being issued on November 6, 2001. 2000s decade 2000 Camera phone The introduction of the camera phone in 2000 was an innovation that changed the daily lives of millions of people around the world. It allowed people to instantly take photos and videos, and dealt a major blow to the digital camera industry. 2001 iPod The iPod is a line of portable media players and multi-purpose pocket computers[2] designed and marketed by Apple Inc. The first version was released on October 23, 2001, about 8 1⁄2 months after the Macintosh version of iTunes was released. As of May 28, 2019, only the iPod Touch (7th generation) remains in production. 2002 SERF A spin-exchange relaxation-free (SERF) magnetometer achieves very high magnetic field sensitivity by monitoring a high density vapor of alkali metal atoms precessing in a near-zero magnetic field. SERF magnetometers are among the most sensitive magnetic field sensors and in some cases exceed the performance of SQUID detectors of equivalent size. The SERF magnetometer was invented by Michael V. Romalis at Princeton University in 2002. 2003 Fermionic condensate A fermionic condensate is a superfluid phase formed by fermionic particles at low temperatures. The first atomic fermionic condensate was invented by Deborah S. Jin in 2003. 2003 Slingshot (water vapor distillation system) Slingshot is a portable water purification device powered by a stirling engine running on a combustible fuel source. The size of a dorm fridge, the